Befriending The Enemy

Redhood Vs Deathstroke

After relentlessly teasing Dick, he made his exit out of the elevator, spotting Deathstroke leaning against a metal table with his arms folded. He plastered a smirk on his face. "I feel like I'm about to be scolded." Jason said.

Deathstroke kicked off the table, putting his hands behind his back. "You intrigue me." He said. "I want to know how you fight. Care to one on one?"

Jason's smirk grew. "Thats why I came down. What are we using? Swords? Guns? Or just a good ole fashion fist fight?"

"I leave that up to you." Deathstroke responded.

Jason nodded. "Sweet. Swords then. Guns seem a little extreme."

Deathstroke nodded, walking over to the weapons table and grabbed for two katanas. He walked over to Jason, twirling one out to him. Jason lifted a brow, slowly taking it. He brought the blade close, realizing it wasnt dulled.

"Woah is this a real sword? What about practice ones?" He asks.

Deathstroke chuckled, spinning the Katana in his hand. "Who said anything about practice swords?" He stepped forward. "In sparring here, we use real weapons."

Jason smiled ear to ear, swapping the katana from one hand to the other. "I'm liking your style more and more."

Deathstroke brought the katana up, nodding. "Ready?"

"Ready."

Both of them stayed put, the air growing silent and steady. Deathstroke eyed Jason, watching him silently. No one made a move for a few breaths, until Jason stepped forward, bring the Katana down. Deathstroke saw this and positioned his katana to block Jason's slash. With their Katanas crossed, Deathstroke used his foot, bringing it around, he caught Jasons knee, buckling it out from under him.

Jason crumbled to the floor, groaning. "Clever. Now I know where Dick got that trick from."

"Lesson number one: Never expect an ordinary sword fight. The other may never play fair. Keep your eyes on the enemys body movement and language." Deathstroke explained, motioning with his Katana for Jason to stand.

Jason did so. He didnt realize this would include lessons. It almost felt like training with Batman just with real life threatening swords... not that Batman didn't put him through hell with training. This just felt much more... like he was an adult.

Jason got back into his position, watching Deathstroke closer. He wasted no time and went for the strike. This time he was able to spot Deathstroke bringing his arm up while trying to strike down with the Katana.

Jason jumped back, bringing the katana up to skid against Deathstrokes. Deathstroke nodded. "Good to see my lesson stuck." He said.

Deathstroke broke the crisscross of the katanas, bringing it to Jasons side who blocked it, dropping to his knees and going for the trip trick. Deathstroke jumped over his leg, squatting down, he grabbed Jasons foot, tugging as he went back up. Jason slammed on his back, groaning as his sword clattered to his side.

"Not fair." Jason protested, tilting his head up to look at Deathstroke. "Using cheap tricks."

"You didnt beat Grayson. I'm his mentor. You have a long way before you are ready." He stepped forward, holding out a hand for Jason to grab. Jason used this as his leverage. Using a trick Batman taught him. He grabbed Deathstrokes hand, twisting it as he got up and he wrapped his right leg around Deathstrokes own leg. Using the weight distribution, he slammed Deathstroke to the ground.

Deathstroke chuckled, looking up at Jason who now towered over him. "I must say you surprised me. Nicely done with using your opponents weight against them."

Jason held out his hand, helping Deathstroke to his feet. "Its something I learned from Bats."

Deathstroke nodded. "Lets leave it at that, shall we Jason?" He grabbed for Jasons katana on the floor, putting it away. "We have some... details to look over concerning the incident today. Get some rest. The guest room is open." He grabbed for a very old wooden black box on the table, before making his way to the elevator.

Jason smiled, looking down at his hands. It was nice to spare with someone who doesn't scold you for making a mistake. Rubbing the back of his head, he decided to retire for the night.

*Back at the mountain*

Green arrow came in as the team was still trying to wrap their heads around what was happening. He spotted Batman typing away angrily on the computer.

"Hey Bats. Got something you may want to see." He said, catching Bats attention as well as the kiddie league.

Batman turned to Green arrow, who handed him a flash drive. "A store owner said there was some action outside of their store. They gave me the memory." He said.

Batman plugged it in, projecting it onto the bigger screen. It started as an empty street, but after a minute of nothing, four motorcycles came to a stop. Deathstroke.

"Its Robin!" Shouted Wally.

They watched the screen, seeing Dick look around. In a blink of an eye, Dick was hit with something, causing his bike to topple over. The others got off their bikes, getting to cover. Green arrow stepped forward, pressing a button to shift to a camera that showed another angle. One of Dick.

"His side. Its bleeding." Pointed out Rocket.

"Is there any sound?" Asked Artemis.

"Its security cameras. They won't have sound." Says Batman who was watching the screen with intensity.

They watched Dick dodge soemthing, before pulling his gun out and shooting soemthing off screen. It was still odd seeing Dick use guns. Especially for Batman who swore to never use them.

Dick peaked over the car for a few seconds, before slowly sliding down the car and sitting on his butt. Deathstroke and to their surprise Jason and Sportsmaster appeared in the frame as well. They watched as they shared a conversation before Sportsmaster disappeared off screen and Deathstroke picked up Dick. When he turned they finally saw the damage. An arrow was in his side.

"What went down? Who were they shooting at?" Asked M'gan.

"Whoever they were, they knew better than to step in frame of a camera." Green Arrow explained. "All I know is Dick was injured and Sportsmaster as well as Jason were there."

"Jason is undercover." Batman corrected. "Why is Sportsmaster in this?"

"A mission maybe?" Says Artemis, bitterly.

"Is Dick okay?" Wally asked.

"I haven't heard from Jason yet." Batman turned to the team. "Mission tomorrow. Report early. For now, get rest." He snapped, coldly, walking away from them.

They all stared at the still of Dick in Deathstrokes arms. It made them feel guilty everytime they see Dick with Deathstroke.

After a few more swapped conversations, they decided to retire with more questions than answers.

A/N: so my test came back negative! Yay! Which means back to work Monday! ^-^ I hope you like this chapter!